DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS CHANDIGARH ADMINISTRATION
Chandigarh, 8 October 2020:
Medicinal Plant Board Chandigarh: Launched Grow Your Own Herbs & Food Campaign
As part of Atamnribhar Bharat Abhiyan
Today, on concluding day of Wildlife Week, Medicinal Plants Board, Chandigarh under Department of Forests & Wildlife of Chandigarh Administration in collaboration with Yuvsatta-an NGO organized a training programme for Eco Club teachers at Botanical Garden, Sarangpur.
In his inaugural address Sh. Debendra Dalai, said that with initiatives of Medicinal Plant Board of Chandigarh, Herbal Gardens are established in almost all prominent Schools of the city. Now with ongoing Covid pandemic and Government of Indias insistence on making people self-reliant (Atamnirbhar), we plan to start a GROW YOUR OWN HERBS & FOOD CAMPAIGN through active participation of Eco Clubs in Schools& Colleges. So that the young students become the agents of change in this direction of every home in the city growing its own herbs and food by way of adopting new vertical urban farming techniques. In which less space and water is consumed and one gets an organic produce of vegetables and fruits with green environment at minimal cost.
Senior resource persons like Dr. Madan Gulati, MD, Ayurveda with 40 years experience of practice and Dr. Navtej Singh of Punjab Agricultural University shared with teachers about herbs, fruits and vegetables which can be easily grown at homes, in waste bottles, containers, buckets etc.
Dr. Madan Gulati, stressed that herbs are among the easiest plants to grow. Most herbs love the sun, so all you need to get started is a nice, sunny place in your house for them to call home. People can easily grow Spear Mint/Pudina, Coriander /Dhania, Holy Basil/Tulsi, Lemongrass, Curry Leaves/ Kadi Patta, Carom/ Ajwain, Chilli Pepper/ Mirchi, Thyme, Indian Sorrel/ Chaangeri etc at home. Chaangeri is a well-documented ayurvedic herb useful in vitamin C deficiency, rheumatoid arthritis, indigestion and diarrhea.
Dr. Navtej Singh added that these days growing your own seasonal vegies and fruits at home ensures that they are organic and do not contain all the pesticides and herbicides used in commercially grown crops. On this occasion, information books and seed-kits from Punjab Agricultural University were also distributed to all participants, besides tulsi plants which were also presented to take home.
Approximately teachers from around 70 Eco Clubs of the city participated in the programme.
